by G. Bailey
“Thank you. I promise I will never let you down again. Never,” he says into my hair, kissing the top of my head.
“You best not,” I chuckle, wishing I could hear my dragon’s thoughts on the matter, but she is still locked away from the magic in here. I don’t even want to know Eli’s, Kor’s, and Dagan’s thoughts on this when we get out of here. They are likely going to flip a lid, but I won’t lie to them.
“We should get going. We need to get out of here,” I say, pulling away but keeping my hand linked with his. He carefully picks up the flashlight from the floor without touching the crystal. Thorne flashes the light around the cave, and we both see the cave we came through is gone, and there is just a wall in its place now. There is another tunnel on the other side, and I guess that’s the only way we can go.
“Are your hands okay?” I ask, feeling a little bit of the burns on his knuckles with my hand as we walk towards the tunnel and step off the crystal.
“Yeah, they don’t hurt much,” he shrugs, but I bet they do. Men and their egos.
“What is that?” I ask, seeing a light at the end of the tunnel just ahead of us.
“Maybe it’s the exit?” Thorne asks.
“I don’t think so . . . That would make it too easy . . .” my voice trails off as we walk into the light, and I take in the sight in front of me. The clearing is a meadow with white, glowing grass and five black trees in the middle of the grass. There are white flowers which smell amazing as we walk closer to the trees, and everything suddenly starts to feel a little hazy.
“Thorne . . .” I manage to whisper as his hand lets go of mine, and he falls to the floor. My legs can’t seem to hold themselves up as I drop right next to him, seeing his lips form my name just before everything goes black.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Isola
“Hello?” I call, opening my eyes and staring at the empty ballroom in front of me. This room is from the castle. How did I get here? Where is Thorne? The ballroom is covered in flowers, a table full of presents is in one corner, and there’s also a table full of food. I turn and look at the thrones at the front of the room. One large one, and one a little bit smaller. There are three pairs of thrones in different rooms of the castle, if I remember correctly, and I used to love watching my mother and father sitting on them, their crowns shining. They always looked so proud and happy. When nothing happens for a while, I start to panic, turning in circles. Where is Thorne?
“Thorne?” I shout, though my voice doesn't seem to make a sound around the room. The double doors suddenly open behind me, and I turn, seeing my mother walk in, her stomach large with pregnancy, and my father right behind her. My mum looks furious as she stops in the middle of the room. My mother has a long, stunning blue dress on, that matches my father’s blue shirt. All blue, all representing the ice dragons that are nearly extinct now.
“All this time . . . all this time you never told me you slept with Tatarina? Then you cheat on me with the royal seer who is now pregnant! How many others?” my mum demands, screaming at him, and ice starts spreading across the gold floor as she shouts.
“Mum,” I croak out, trying to go to her, but I can’t move an inch, it’s like I’m glued to the spot.
“No one else. Those were mistakes, grave mistakes,” my father pleads, reaching for my mum, but she steps back.
“Liar! I know about the maid you just slept with, during our child’s blessing ceremony of all things! While everyone is here to celebrate the fact that our child is nearly here, and you are too busy fucking the maid! A maid who was my friend!” mum spits out and walks over to him, slapping him hard around the face. He lets her, not moving as blood drips down his chin.
“I am sorry,” he says.
“Tatarina was my best friend, and I never understood why she hated me so much like she does now. You took her from me because you are a spoiled brat who thinks he can have anyone and anything he wants!” mum growls and walks around him, towards the door. “I tell you now, you will never have me again. Publicly I will be a queen for you, but that is it.”
“And our child? You can’t tell her, she would hate me,” he pleads.
“I will tell her everything about her father and what he has done when she is old enough to understand. Now never come near me again unless it’s business about the crown,” she says coldly and walks out of the room, leaving my father standing, watching her go. He falls to his knees, his head in his hands, and as I watch, I just hate him.
The vision suddenly blurs, and the room spins rapidly. I have to close my eyes as I fall to my knees as everything shakes. When the shaking stops, I open my eyes and look down at the long red dress I’m wearing. The dress is massive, something a queen would wear. I stand up slowly, staring out at the ballroom, which is completely on fire now. Pieces of the ceiling fall around me as I stand still in the middle of it. So much fire.
“I always knew you would bring fire and darkness. This is your future,” a cold voice says behind me, and I turn, seeing Tatarina watching me with a huge smile.
“No,” I whisper.
“To Dragca, may it burn eternal,” she laughs, and everything, thankfully, fades away.
“Isola? Isola, wake up!” Thorne’s voice calls to me, but everything seems groggy as I force my eyes open and look at the cave ceiling. “Here,” Thorne says, helping me up slowly and offering me some water from his bag. I drink some quickly, looking back over at the trees and meadow in the next room as I try to collect my thoughts.
“The blossom in the trees must be some kind of herb. Made to make you pass out and see visions. I saw some weird stuff, but Melody gave me an herb before we left. She said to take it when we entered the cave,” he says, and I chuckle, wiping my eyes to wake myself up. “I guess it woke me up.”
“Sounds like Melody. Mysterious and random,” I say, my mind flashing back to the vision I saw. My father and mother hated each other, they always did. The vision of the future, of everything burning, and Tatarina winning.
“What’s wrong?” Thorne asks, clearly seeing something in my expression.
“The vision showed that my father was always cheating on my mother, that she knew and hated him for it my entire life. Then it changed, showing me a version of the future that we cannot allow to happen,” I whisper.
“The vision showed me that my mother never loved my father, and she just used him to further her plan,” he says, smoothing his hands down my arms and leaving goose bumps. “I think we qualify for the most fucked-up parents award, don’t you?”
“Yep,” I laugh.
“Our parents are not us, and we can be better than them. That’s all the vision was trying to show us, that we are better than they were. That somehow, we learnt right from wrong, even if it wasn’t taught to us by both our parents,” he says, helping me stand up as the room still sways a little.
“My mum taught me right from wrong, and I now know she is the bravest and most selfless woman I ever met. She put me and the crown before her own happiness,” I say.
“You won’t ever have to do that,” he insists.
“Who knows what the future will bring? Now we need to find a way out,” I say, straightening up and holding onto Thorne’s hand. He puts the water away, and we start walking down the path we are on. It leads through a few more rooms made of crystal until we get to a much bigger room, full of treasure.
“It looks like a pirate hid all his treasure here,” I gasp, staring at the piles of gold, jewels, and various other things littered around.
“Yeah, more like ten pirates and an army of jewel thieves maybe,” Thorne mutters.
“I don’t think we should touch anything. On Earth, they have tales of dragons hoarding jewels and gold, that they love shiny things and will do anything to protect them. Maybe there is some truth to it?” I suggest as we walk through the piles of gold.
“Humans are smarter than they look, children of Dragca, and the rumour is very much true,” an old lady’s voice drifts o
ver to us. We look over to our left, seeing an old woman sitting on a gold throne, holding an old but deadly-looking staff. She has a black, ragged cloak on that covers her body, and her long grey hair falls around her shoulders.
“We didn’t come here to steal. We just want to pass through here,” I say, locking my eyes with her blue ones. I don’t know why, but some part of me is cautious of the woman.
“I know. Yet you want something, you just do not know what,” she says, speaking in riddles.
“Can you offer me something I want?” I ask.
“For a price, yes,” she says, a big smile appearing on her dry, cracked lips.
“What is the price?” I ask hesitantly. Her haunting laugh fills the room as her next words frighten me.
“A price you will never give willingly.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Isola
“Explain? What wouldn’t I give?” I ask, holding my hands on my hips. The old lady laughs again, lifting her staff and pointing it at Thorne.
“Love, the throne, and most of all, your people. You care too much to be a queen,” the lady says. “A trait you have from your mother. Though, I do like people who care more for others than themselves.”
“What is your name?” I ask, wondering how she knew anything about my mother, but learning her name might be the best start.
“Secrets are best kept that way, don’t you think?” she says, moving her eyes between me and Thorne.
“You’ve lost me with all these riddles. We want to get out of this cave, not stand around talking. Let’s go, Isola,” Thorne says in a frustrated tone, and the old lady shoots a white light at him from the staff, making him fall to the ground with a thud.
“Thorne!” I scream, kneeling next to him and feeling his neck, thankfully finding a pulse.
“Don’t you go worrying, he will be fine. I needed him out of the way, so we ladies could speak about the important things,” she says, chuckling as I glare at her. “Men only get in the way, especially a sexy one like him.”
“Talk about what?” I ask, standing up and staying in front of Thorne, though I cringe at her words. She suddenly loses all traces of amusement from her face.
“There must be balance, and very soon the balance will tip all the way in the favour of darkness. Now dark does not mean evil, nor does light mean good,” she says, and I’m sure I have heard that somewhere before, but I can’t remember where.
“Balance?” I question.
“All the worlds must have balance. We all have a choice, but none matter as much as your choice does,” she says, her random sentences not making a bit of sense to me. It’s like she jumps from one thought to another without explaining the last.
“Choice about what?” I ask.
“If you wish to become the balance or not,” she says. “Though, you were born to be. Every time a balance is born here, they are either destroyed by the power, or they reject it. I do look forward to your choice,” she says, smiling at me like she is proud of me or something.
“Lady, this isn’t making much sense to me. What is the balance? What choice? What price?” I ask, shooting questions off rapidly, and she sighs deeply.
“Children,” she huffs. “They have no patience at all these days.”
“That doesn’t exactly answer my question,” I mutter as the lady carefully stands up and beckons me over. I glance once more at Thorne, who looks fast asleep and safe, before walking over to her because I know we need answers. She then walks through the piles of gold, and I follow until she stops so suddenly that I slam into her back. I collect myself before walking to her side and stare at the row of rocks in front of us. Ten rocks, all different colours and each one is floating.
“Balance is important in all worlds. Earth. Dragca, Fray, and many others that are interlinked,” she says. I know of Earth and Dragca, of course, but not Fray.
“Fray?” I ask.
“There are portals on Earth to it, it’s where fairies are from. Did you really think you were the only supernatural being alive? I believe there is even a war on Earth as we speak, destroying one of its main cities. The one with the pointy tower,” she clicks her fingers in the air as I try to process her information. “Never mind the name of the place, Earth is not important right now.”
“Who the hell are you? How do you know all this?” I demand, staring at her.
“Earth people call me a goddess, others call me a fate, and I have many, many other names you will never have heard of. I travel between worlds to do my job, to keep my power,” she explains.
“Fate? You are fate?” I ask.
“One of many, at your service.” She grins, a toothless one at that. “That is the human saying, yes?”
“Erm, yep,” I reply, completely weirded out.
“Where were we? Oh yes, balance,” she snaps her fingers, and the stones shake a little.
“Are the stones the balance?” I ask.
“No. You are. The people on Dragca, the dragons, the humans, and every being here. If darkness takes over, light will have to defend it,” she says. “Dragca cannot fall, because Earth and Fray would not be far behind. Millions, billions will die.”
“You mean Bee and I have to defend it?” I ask in a hoarse whisper from the pressure her words create, and she smiles.
“Ah, the light spirit. Funny little things, aren't they? What is your dark spirit called again?” she asks, and I give her a confused look.
“I don’t have a dark spirit, only a light one,” I explain.
“Oh, I forgot. Silly me,” she smacks her head with the staff. “I also forgot that this is for you.” She hands me the staff, and I have no choice but to accept it, as she lets it fall into my open hands. I lift it up, examining the two deadly spikes on either end, and the twirls engraved all the way down it. The lady pushes a red gem right in the middle of the staff, and I step back in shock as the staff goes all bendy and snake-like as it gets smaller. It suddenly swirls around my arm, stopping with the red gem on my wrist.
“What the hell?”
“I’ve been to Hell, and it is not a nice place. Nasty demons there, child,” the lady chuckles as I stare at my arm as I move it around.
“How does it work?” I ask, holding my arm out, and she looks at me like I’m an idiot.
“It’s a royal weapon, a magic staff that can channel your ice and light powers. Only your blood line can use and wear it. The staff will change with you when you shift, and if you need to use it, you only have to push the red gemstone,” she says in exasperation, like I should know all this.
“Thank you,” I say honestly, knowing the staff could be very useful and very well might save my life one day.
“It belongs to your blood line, your very first ancestor made it. I would know, I was there,” she laughs. “He was a funny man. I did like him very much.”
“How old are you?” I ask as she continues to laugh, and she shakes her head, tapping the side of her nose to let me know I don’t have a chance of getting that answer. I’m willing to bet she is pretty old.
“Now, we must discuss a price for the gift,” she hums, rubbing her hands together.
“What gift?” I ask, guessing she doesn’t mean the staff.
“I can tell you how to break the dragon guard curse. It is rather easy, actually, I’m surprised no one thought of it before, but you will need my help,” she chuckles.
“You know how to break it?” I ask.
“Yes. Why else would Essna send you in here? She isn’t a bad girl that one,” the lady winks, and then the playfulness leaves her eyes.
“What is the price?” I whisper, dreading her response. From the look she is giving me, I know I won't like it.
“The price for the answer you seek is dear. In many years, when your firstborn turns eighteen, she is to be sent to me. No one will see her for three years, and my price will be taken,” she says, almost singing the words, and I feel the power connected to them.
“What will you do w
ith her?” I ask, my voice a mere rasp.
“I cannot tell you more, only that it is her fate. You must also never tell her of the promise you make me today. She cannot know in advance,” she says and places her hand on my arm. “Do not worry, I see many children in the future you seek.”
“You’re asking me to hand over my child to you, my firstborn, the heir of Dragca, if I win the throne?” I whisper.
“Yes. It is not an easy price to pay, but without my knowledge, you will never have a child to give me anyway,” she says simply. “I cannot offer the help of a fate without a price. I do not wish to cause you more pain, Isola Dragice. I know your life has not been kind to you so far.”
“Can you promise me her safety? That she will not be harmed?” I ask, needing at least that much to be answered.
“I promise that she will be under my protection. That is all I can say,” she says, and steps over to the rocks. As I watch, she grabs the glowing blue one, crushing it in her hand and when she opens her hand, a long silver chain holds a tiny blue rock.
“You must wear this every day, until the time comes for you to fulfill your promise. Give it to your daughter when you bring her here in several years,” she says.
“There isn’t really a choice, is there? The curse must fall at the final promise. That’s what the prophecy says. This is my fate, and my child will be the price and promise,” I whisper and walk forward, tears streaming down my cheeks. I wrap my hand around the chain, lifting it and placing it over my head, so it falls around my neck.
“I promise,” I breathe out roughly, and the stone glows briefly before settling back down. I look back up at the lady, who is smiling widely.
“Brilliant,” she claps. “Let’s wake your man, well, one of them, up. We will be needing him to break the curse.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
